1. Field of the Invention
Methods and apparatuses consistent with the present invention relate to a home network, and more particularly, to obtaining external digital content in a Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) network.
2. Description of Related Art
A home network in which home devices are networked via a communication network such as mobile communication, high speed Internet, etc. can provide users of the home network a variety of services regardless of the time a user accesses a service, the location of the user, or the type of home devices, and can increase user convenience with the use of an interworking service.
A user can purchase (download) digital contents such as movies, music, comics, etc., through on-line sites providing the digital contents via a high speed communication network infrastructure, store the digital contents in a home server, and reproduce the digital contents via a rendering device such as a digital TV, an audio device, etc., using a home network system that primarily provides home entertainment.
FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a related art method of purchasing contents from an Internet site in a home network. Referring to FIG. 1, a user, using a device capable of downloading contents such as a Personal Computer (PC), WiFi-Phone, etc., logs on to the Internet site that sells contents, browses content available on the Internet site, and purchases/downloads desired content. At this time, the user can pay the Internet site for the desired contents using a third billing system, a cellular phone, cyber money, etc.
Owing to developments in home network technology, a user can reproduce the downloaded digital content using any rendering device of the home network, and copy the downloaded digital content to a mobile device such as an MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3 (MP3) player, etc.
However, when the user browses contents to be reproduced using a consumer electronics (CE) device such as a digital television (TV) and there is no desired content on the CE device that the user wishes to reproduce, the user must purchase (download) content using a device, such as a PC, in order to be connected to an external Internet site.
Specifically, if the content that is reproduced by the CE device such as the digital TV in a home network based on a UPnP framework is not local content but external charged content provided by the external Internet site, since a content reproducing device and a content purchasing device are separate from each other, the user must purchase the content via an interface such as the PC.
In this regard, a UPnP media server software (S/W) capable of interworking with an external Internet site through the CE device in a home network, and a UPnP media server capable of purchasing content is suggested. A method that browses a contents list of online stores selling digital contents through a CE device such as the digital TV and allows the purchase of a desired content is required.